Friday, February 26, 2016

My oldest son, now 46, has been autistic
since birth. No good explanation as to why but his mother was in labor for 36
hours. He was in a transverse position. He has given me permission to relate
some of his history.

Autism spans a broad range of behaviors
and impairments. In his case it seemed his brain didn’t process stimuli in real
time – always with a noticeable delay.

Our first interaction with the police was
at a department store in Salt Lake City. We turned around and he was gone. Two
police officers showed up and helped search. Two hours later a clerk discovered
him among the shelves under a display island. He hated going into stores. I had
a pair of ear protectors he latched onto and wanted to wear them. We indulged
him and he was happy to go into stores so long as he was wearing them. Seems
the florescent lights made a noise he could hear and was painful.

Fast forward to his teen years. With the
help of some gifted and dedicated Special Ed teachers he was able to function fairly
well in school (still special ed) and society. Around age 16 he started
demanding money from his mother. She told him no. He then tried to rob a
tavern.

He entered the back door of a tavern one
night armed with a marshmallow stick and
demanded money. The police were called. When they entered the back door, he let
out a screech and charged them. They
wrestled him to the ground, handcuffed him, and took him to the police station.
I was called and went down. The two officers were visibly nervous as they
explained the situation to me. He was fairly well scuffed up. They relaxed
after I thanked them for their professionalism in not shooting him. Even though
he is only 5’4” and 135 lbs, charging two police officers with a “weapon” in
dim light is a recipe for disaster. They let me take him home where I was able
to learn his motivation.

Seems he “owed” some drug dealer money
and the dealer was threatening him. He was robbing the tavern to get money to
pay the dealer because his mother wouldn’t give it to him. I found out where he was to make payment and a
description of the dealer. I showed up in his place. The meeting did not go
well for the drug dealer.

Now 21, he had a job in the deli section
of an upscale grocery store in Bellevue, WA. One morning he stepped off the bus
and was hit by a bicyclist. They went head to head. In the weeks following he
went back to zero. The road to recovery was rocky. We did extract enough money
from the bicyclist’s insurance company to find a condo for him and purchase it.
Then came his knight in shining armor period.

Seems one of his friends claimed she was
raped. My son went to the “rapist’s” door armed with a butter knife to do who
knows what. My son got punched, the police were called, and my son was arrested.
Some butthead Assistant District
Attorney laid attempted murder with a deadly weapon and other charges and got
bail set at $300,000. He spent the next four months in the King County (WA)
jail awaiting trial. Here is where professionalism came into play. The
correctional officers kept him safe. It wasn’t pleasant for him but it could
have been a nightmare. When his case finally went in front of a judge, she
tossed the whole case and spent ten minutes publicly berating the ADA.

From jail he went to a mental health
facility for a year and then to a less restrictive placement where he remains.
He works in the kitchen and has a part time job selling an alternative
newspaper outside a coffee shop in the Seattle Fremont district.

He has had interactions with law
enforcement over the years, mainly positive. Once two street hustlers got his
bank card from him. He went to his bank and they called the police. He made a
big hit with the investigators when he gave them a stick figure drawing of the
suspects to help identify them. A less positive experience was being robbed of
his leather coat and luggage in the Chicago Amtrak station while a police
officer was in the area and didn’t intercede. Of well, Chicago where you need
to pay to play.

I truly appreciate the police officer
that have been involved with my son (and his siblings, another story for
another time). They have been professional, compassionate, and caring. They
deal with human misery and dysfunction at a level most of us will never,
thankfully, experience.

Please don’t feel “sorry” for me as the
parent. Life isn’t always fair. I get up every day and start putting one foot
in front of the other. Somehow it usually works out. Feeling sorry for yourself
just makes you sorry, and a burden on
those around you. YMMV

Wednesday, February 24, 2016

Back when Interstate routes were being
decided in Colorado the fight was the US 6 route with a tunnel(s) or US 40 with
a tunnel. The ski resorts, especially
Aspen, favored US 6 which won out. Unfortunately that meant building a highway above
Georgetown then through Glenwood Canyon and DeBeque Canyon, home to some of the
most unstable rock to be found in the state. A tunnel under the Continental
Divide on the US 40 route was feasible with known risks thanks to the Moffat
Tunnel and another tunnel pushed through by the GODDAMNDENVERWATERBOARD (yes,
one word to the Western Slope residents).

The point of the preceding paragraph is
this; Glenwood Canyon is closed once again due to mammoth rock falls. This is
almost a yearly occurrence. The Interstate has been closed for a week with no
opening in sight. Once it does open many weeks will pass before it is more than
one lane for both directions with pilot cars.

Bitch of a detour. Rifle to Craig on
Colorado 13, all two lanes with few places to pass. At this time of year the area has huge deer
and elk populations crossing the road. From Craig it is US 40 via Steamboat
Springs. East of Steamboat Springs you can decide to take Colorado 131 through
Oak Creek, Phippsburg, Yampa, Toponas, McCoy and Bond to Wolcott Junction and
back on Interstate 70, about a 113 mile detour. Or you can stay on US 40 and
join Interstate 70 below Georgetown. You have the thrill of Rabbits Ears Pass,
Muddy Pass, and Berthoud Pass. This route also has eight miles of Byers Canyon West of Hot Sulphur Springs, a 35 mph two lane, no guardrails, section of US 40. While large rock falls are rare, small ones are frequent. Nasty little surprise for you as you exit one of the sharp corners.

None of the roads on this detour are
adequate for heavy traffic. Many drivers have never faced these kinds of roads,
especially in winter. While paved, most have no shoulders and follow what were
stage coach routes. All the small towns have 25 mph speed limits. The two big
towns, Craig and Steamboat Springs, have never mastered synchronized traffic
signals.

If your travel plans are to/from Las
Vegas or Southern California, this would be a good time to see Arizona and New
Mexico. To the North, Interstate 80 is your best option.

Monday, February 22, 2016

Headed South out of Scottsbluff on Highway 71 you go over Wildcat Hills. Just before you start up, there is an interesting byway. The road goes back just a few miles before it dead ends. Today I had some time and the road was dry for the first time in weeks.Imagine you are headed North to Scottsbluff on a stagecoach. If you have ever ridden in one, you know they are not noted for smoothness and comfort. Finally, you sight the end

Saturday, February 20, 2016

How I envy and admire bloggers who post daily or even regularly. No inspiration here.Sometimes I see something that might make a blog. As an example, a pick and pull auto salvage yard owner is a model hobbyist. The office areas have display cases filled with museum quality military aircraft and ship models. Who would expect to find something like that?So, my apologies for the lack of posts. Be assured I enjoy reading yours.

What happens when leaders aren’t
respected by their subordinates? Often the subordinates go rouge. Consider the
Secret Service. Fairly high opinion held by the public. With the Lightbringer
in office that has changed.

Tuesday, February 9, 2016

My middle son at age five was fascinated
by airplanes and helicopters. One day he was riding with me as we passed by a
parking lot where a man was giving rides in a Hughes 300. My son got really
excited so we went for a ride (probably 20 minutes). Everything was cool until
we lifted off. He took in a deep, gasping breath as the ground fell away but
soon settled down and enjoyed the ride.

When I’m in a general aviation airplane,
pilot or passenger, my head is on a swivel. Just a habit my first instructor
implanted in me. Look left, up and down. Look front up and down. Look at the
instruments. Look right, up and down. Repeat. The pilot noticed this and
finally leaned over (no intercom) and shouted, “I’ve been doing this for a
while and have never had a RPG come my way”.

Having never been in Viet Nam, I have no
way of knowing if my behavior was normal over there.

The kid enjoyed the ride and the pilot
had customers waiting so I was never able to clear up his misconception.

Friday, February 5, 2016

Tough start for the month. Everyday on our route something is closed. I-76 in Northeast Colorado. I-25 Cheyenne to Wheatland. My shift, Monday to Wednesday was three 14 hour days. Paul, who works Thursday to Saturday, is facing the same conditions. Black ice and blowing snow makes for a long day.Had my first off road excursion in many years Tuesday. Asshole darted across the highway. Missed him but spun out into the median. Took out a delineator.

Two oilfield men stopped, got out a tow strap, and pulled me out. Got to love Wyoming people. Maybe karma for all the people I've pulled out over the years.Wallowing around in the snow with a shovel, and crawling around in the snow finding a place to tie the tow rope, makes me realize I'm too fucking old for this shit. Developed a touch of a chest cold.Maybe someday I will grow up, ya think?

Monday, February 1, 2016

Kind of a rambling and perhaps pointless blog entry. You have been warned.The large winter storm moving through the area is more towards the South of us but the fringe is still hitting us hard. Crappy cell phone snaps, please bear with me. This morning around 0430. 40 mph in a 80 mph zone.

There were many of these out working. Not supposed to pass one but I don't have time to follow one at 40 mph.

Then there are these signs on 78 miles of road I must travel.

And damn little after 5 am.South of Kimball, NE. Highway 71. Strange day - the wind was from the East. Hold my beer moment when a jackass trucker missed his turn, stopped dead, then started backing up. Prius vs 53' trailer? Didn't like those odds.

The place has cabbage burgers but not at 0900 when I gas up.486 miles, and I get to do it tomorrow and Wednesday. The wind wasn't bad today but the forecast for tomorrow is for worse weather.The man who drives Wed to Saturday spent 40 years driving big rigs in 49 States and most Provinces. We are two old silver-backs but have the jobs because we are "seasoned". The other "kids" want our routes. Not happening. Our routes are the branch's most lucrative and for the most demanding client. The managers leave us alone and the job gets done every day no matter what the weather throws at us.I'm nearly finished paying off the deductibles and co pays on the pacemaker but think I will keep the job until summer or I win the lottery.

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About Me

Semi retired road warrior, car salesman, occasional repo man. Father of three fine sons. Once a Blue Dog Democrat. Once a soldier; once a pilot. Rolling along life's highway proving there is no fool like an old fool.